Twilighting
by edwardsouthernbella
Summary: The Dead On Detective Agency is in desperate need of funds. Bella Swan and Edward Cullen accept a case that might solve this problem, but they encounter a huge challenge- a dead body. How much murder and mayhem will they dodge while falling in love?
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1 The Undoing**

**Disclaimer – I do not own Twilight or Moonlighting.**

**Who is ready for a brand new fic? Thank you all for staying with me and being a part of this journey. I truly love my readers and my fabulous beta, Kitty Masen. My prereaders, The DVS 1 and momma2afan are pretty awesome, too. I will say that things will happen fast between Edward and Bella, like in all of my stories. If you know anything about the television show, Moonlighting, just keep it mind.**

**BPOV**

As I walked out of the elevator and down the hall, my mind was on one thing…the fact that I was glad the heels I was wearing were very sexy. I'd found them in the back of my closet this morning by accident as I was trying to decide between the black shift dress and the burgundy one. Of course I went with the black one since Edward always made some comment about the way the color was marvelous next to my skin. As I opened the door to the agency, Angela waved at me, while she answered the phone.

"Good morning, Dead-On Detective Agency, where we're dead on your case. No case is too little, no case is too big. If you've lost it, we can find it. How can I help you?" she prattled on as I walked by her desk to my office. I closed the door behind me, stood next to it, and let out a deep sigh. He wasn't here yet, but I wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

Six months ago, I was forced to reinvent my life after the devious, lying son of a bitch accountant I hired stole my life's savings. Modeling full time was the focus of my life, and I was thrilled to be on the cover of _Vogue_ and _Elle. _Every person under the sun knew who Bella Swan was, especially since Balenciaga had my face on their perfume advertisements. Then I received the absolute worst call ever…it was all gone in the blink of an eye. Amun emptied my accounts without so much as leaving behind a sarcastic Thank you note.

So what was a girl left to do in order to keep her wits?

I had a few side investments, but the only one that was turning any kind of profit was The Eclipse Detective Agency. After coming down here, it was obvious that the only sane option I had was to keep the business before liquidating it. I'd have more money that way, and I was desperate for cash flow. The name of the agency had to be changed for tax purposes, but that was a minor technicality that could easily be rectified. Every day, I missed the life I once lived…traveling to exotic locales, finding romance with equally exotic men, and sleeping as late as I wanted. Now it was replaced by deductive reasoning, performing background checks and surveillance, and a multitude of other menial tasks. As I walked over to my desk, I thought about the main reason I had for continuing this ridiculous lifestyle. There was only one reason why I kept this up , and it was because of my business associate, Edward Cullen.

From the moment we laid eyes on each other, there was this unbelievable attraction that was impossible to deny. He knew I was seriously reluctant to take on this position. We fought, we bantered, and we came this close to kissing constantly. Any time he entered the room, both of us had to fight the urge from jumping each other's bones. It didn't help matters much that he was devastatingly handsome and my every fantasy brought to life. One whiff of his Cool Water cologne or one intense gaze from his green eyes while we were on a stake out reduced me to a quivering mess. I was reapplying my lip gloss when I heard him coming into the main office.

"Please tell me, Angela…is Miss Swan hiding in her office from me again? She's going to miss out on so much fun if that is the case."

"She just came in before you did, Mr. Cullen…just knock on her door."

I never knew what to expect from him some days because he was good at distracting me. Then I heard him asking to come into my office, and I stood up, smoothing the front of my dress before he came inside.

"Well, good morning sunshine…how's my angel today? Did you sleep well? Can I have Angela bring in some coffee?" he moved around the room with nervous energy.

"Edward, enough with the twenty questions. If I want something to drink, I can get it by myself. Now sit down and tell me what's going on." I told him as I leaned against my desk. He finally came over to sit down directly in front of me.

"Caius isn't going to use our agency to find his missing wife because he's going with the guys over at Carolina's instead," he said in all seriousness.

"What is he thinking?" I asked as my eyes widened. "We can do a far better job than those idiots can."

"I know…trust me, I tried to persuade him, but he wasn't falling for common sense, Bella."

I stood up, walked over to the mirror, and he was behind me seconds later.

"There will be other cases, other clients…crimes are always committed," he began and I turned to see that he was inches from my face. "Look at it like this…we have job security."

After he said that, I looked up at the ceiling and tried to keep from laughing.

"That's not the point, Edward. We have… no, I have overhead about to crash down on me that I need to keep in mind. There are bills to pay. What if I can't cover payroll next week?"

He lifted his finger to run it over my cheek, and as much as I wanted to turn away, I couldn't. Absentmindedly, I licked my lips while his breath hitched. There was a soft knock at the door that interrupted us.

"Miss Swan, there is a gentleman in the lobby waiting to see you and Mr. Cullen," Angela said from the other side.

"We'll be right there," he responded to her as he backed up. "She has _great_ timing, doesn't she?"

"Don't think that I didn't notice that bit of sarcasm," I said as he walked away.

"And you know you love it, Angel, almost as much as you love me. Now let's get ready to dazzle our next customer."

He walked out to greet him while I took a few seconds to simply breathe so I could regain my composure. The man was going to be my undoing. I could hear them a few feet away from my door, and they walked into my office talking like old friends.

"Marcus, I want you to meet the infamous Bella Swan, investigator extraordinaire," he began. She's the best one that you can hire, next to me of course, but we come as a pair…like a two for one deal."

Before I could let one of his obnoxious comments get under my skin, I approached Marcus with a handshake. It bothered me that he held on a little too long, but I kept my smile on my face the entire time.

"Tell me why you are in need of our services please," I said as we sat down.

"My wife, Chelsea, gave away a watch that I owned to an ex-lover that died recently. He is being buried tomorrow, but the visitation is tonight. I need for the two of you to go down to the funeral home, make small talk, and find a way to get it for me."

I could see Edward's eyes moving back and forth between him and me.

"Pardon my forward manner, but why do you want this watch so much, Marcus? Does it hold that much sentimental value to you?" I asked.

"To answer your question, Miss Swan, it is extremely important for you to find it for me. There is no doubt in my mind that you all can locate it," he said while adjusting his jacket. "Your agency came highly recommended to me, and I know you are a bit, how do I say…lacking in the funds department."

Before I could answer, Edward took over for me.

"It's a shame that you listen to the lies that are spread by haters, Sir. I'm not really sure if it is any of your business as to what the state of the agency's financial situation is."

"I'm willing to pay twenty thousand dollars when the watch is in my hands, and ten thousand in a cashier's check as a down payment."

"We'll take it," Edward and I said at the same time.

Marcus let out a dark laugh. "I knew neither one of you could decline my offer. Here is all of the information you will need in this envelope. In less than an hour, I'll return with the check in hand," he said while setting it on the desk.

"Angela will have the contract waiting for you to sign if we aren't here, Marcus," I told him. He nodded my way, walked out of the office, and I was left to read over the multitude of details he had left us.

"Why do I get the feeling that I'm going to regret agreeing to this?" I asked out loud.

"No, I'm not going to let you feel that way, Bella…you said not more than five minutes before Mr. Big Shot walked in that you had no clue how to cover payroll. Hell with all the money he's throwing our way, we could finally take that long, overdue trip to Bora Bora and break some headboards."

"Can't you concentrate on something besides having sex for more than three minutes?" I asked as I desperately tried not to imagine one of my fantasies involving him take over my mind. God, I wanted him more each damn day that passed. It didn't help that he was _everything_ I wanted in a man, from his sex hair to his protective nature. Secretly, I never felt safer than when he was near me, and that was a serious turn on.

"I tried to a few times, Angel, but a guy can only think about the economy or baseball for so long," he said while walking toward the door. "Now, I'm going to get cracking on a few phone calls while you make yourself look even more gorgeous for the funeral home."

He closed the door and I laid my head on the desk. I was in so much trouble, more than I ever expected when I decided it was great idea for us to be his business partners.

-T-

He was driving like a bat of out of hell out of the parking garage.

"I'd like to be able to stand on my own two feet when we get there," I reminded him as he began singing along to Sam Cooke. "You of all people know how car sick I can get, and with the way you take corners, I'll be lucky to keep lunch down."

"Bella, Bella, Bella…have you ever thrown up in my Charger?"

"No, but there's a first time for everything," I said as I clutched the seat. He looked over at me with _that _look…the one that said he wanted to see me naked. So I shot it back at him.

"You can't fool me, Angel…it's inevitable, as much as solving this case is inevitable. Marcus specifically said that we are the best ones for the job."

"Why is he hell-bent on getting back a watch that his wife gave to someone else?"

He took in a deep breath of air.

"My guess is that he needs it for some reason besides the warm fuzzy sentimental memories," he said as we pulled into the parking lot.

"How are we going to pull this off?" I asked when he opened the door.

"The same way we do it every time…smoke and mirrors, sleight of hand, and a great poker face never hurts."

Sometimes this business that we were in together was akin to a game of craps. We were always taking some sort of chance, and he lived for the adrenaline rush. This was not the life I was supposed to live, but I wasn't quite sure I could go back to any other way. Was I just as addicted to this crazy world that Edward lived in? I knew the answer to that question; it was only a matter of accepting that fact now.

"Good evening, we are here for the visitation for Frank Boyd. Would you please tell us which room he is in?"

Edward was amazingly smooth, perfect at lying in order to get information. He was also a great bullshit artist, but that was a requirement for the job. The director of the funeral home led us down the hall where we were met with a grieving family. Quickly, we made up a fictitious account of how Edward, who was going by David at the moment, used to work for him when Frank was in pharmaceutical sales. That was one detail I absolutely loved about this man…he did thorough research. Amazingly, I could play along with any of his games. After several minutes, he pulled me away from the family, and we dashed down the hall to a room that only had a coffin in it.

"Edward…can you please tell me why we are in this room again?" I said as he went over and began running his hands over it.

"Because I am looking to see where the damn drawer is so I can open it. Call me crazy, but I have the distinct feeling that the watch is in it."

"Can you please hurry up? Funeral homes give me the creeps…and what if there is a body in it?'

"That's the purpose of said coffin," he said while pulling open a small drawer crammed with mementos. "Give me just a few more minutes and I'll have it out."

"You know I always imagined the first time I was this near to one that I'd be on my back."

He closed it, turned to look at me, and shook his head as he tried to keep his sexy grin hidden from me. "Don't temp me, Angel."

Minutes later, after he had the watch in his coat pocket, we exited the place quietly. No one had a clue that we had basically stolen a watch from a dead man. As usual, Edward was calm, cool, and collected as we rode around, but I was on edge.

"Here," he said as he took it out to hand it over. "I know you are dying to get a look see at it."

I examined the watch for a few minutes, but from what I could tell, it was broken. Or perhaps it needed a new battery. There wasn't anything special about it…no diamonds, no inscription on the underside of the face. If anything, it looked like a cheap piece of metal that could be bought at Walmart for less than twenty bucks.

"I just don't get it…why does Marcus want this so badly?" I asked as I slipped it into my bag.

"Maybe he wants to spite his wife?"

"No, there has to be more to it than this…you always tell me to use deductive reasoning."

"Bella, all we have to do now is take this piece of shit over to his penthouse and deliver it. He has ten thousand clams waiting for us, and I'm in one hell of a hurry to get my hands on it."

While he pulled into the parking garage of the massive complex, I still could not put my finger on it, but I felt anxious about this job. Getting this watch was way too easy, and the way Marcus leered at me for that brief span of time he was in my office made me feel uncomfortable. He lived in a penthouse that was near the top of the building, so the elevator ride felt like it took forever. It didn't help matters when it rocked me into Edward's arms.

"Calm down Angel, I've got you right where we know you belong," he said as I looked into his moss green eyes. "Don't let this anxiety get the better of you. "

"It's…it's not that…something else is getting to me," I whispered as he moved his face that much closer to mine. I was ready, god was I ready for him to claim my mouth, but he stopped.

"This isn't the proper place or the proper time for me to kiss you," he began. "I maybe am obnoxious and occasionally a foul mouthed guy, but I have big plans for us. And before you interrupt me, let's just get this business transaction over first."

"Plans? What do you mean you have plans for _us_, Edward Cullen?"

The elevator door opened then.

"One thing at a time, Bella one thing at a time…help me find fifty-eight and we're good as gold."

"Damn it, this…you…you're maddening," I finally exclaimed and he turned to look at me.

"It's all part of my charm, but if you really want a kiss, I'll make it so good that your toes will curl. Now behave yourself," he said as we stood in front of the door to the penthouse. As I began to knock on it, the door opened on its' own, and Edward placed his long arm in front of me before I could walk inside.

"I have a funny feeling that Marcus normally doesn't leave his door unlocked," he said as he stepped inside, keeping me behind him. "Hello, hello…anybody home? We've got your precious watch and you have our dime."

Then he slid his hand over my mouth to cover the scream I was about to let out because we found Marcus, dead with a knife in his back.

"Bella…we need to get the hell out of dodge now. Don't make any noise, don't do anything out of the ordinary … hold my hand, and, for the love of Cub's baseball…act natural."

We backed out of the room and made our way out of the place while I held onto him for dear life. I was trying to control my hyperventilating the entire trip in the elevator.

"What if there were cameras in the hallway, Edward? What if someone saw us enter his place?"

"Look at who you are talking to. I've been here before, once to a bad New Year's Party where there was a cross dresser who looked like Charo," he said. "But to answer your question, no they don't have any cameras in the hallways."

"How the hell can you be _this_ calm?" I asked as we exited the elevator into the lobby. His grip on me was slightly more relaxed as he casually led me to the car.

"Because it's far better than losing it over a rotting corpse," he said after sliding into the driver's seat. He pulled his sunglasses down, turned on the ignition, and drove nonchalantly into the street. My mind was racing a mile a minute…what do we do now…do we call the police…what do we do with the watch? It was too much for me to handle, and I was this close to breaking down.

"Don't do it, Angel…you are one of the strongest women I've ever known," he said as he began whipping the car through traffic. "We'll figure out a plan like we always do. You know we're like the power duos…Sonny and Cher, Scarlett and Rhett, David and Maddie from that old tv show."

I shook my head…this was just like him.

"So we're a _power duo_ now? Good grief….do you have a serious bone in your body…at all?" I asked him.

"So long as I get the job done, which I do better than most investigators, why bother with seriousness? Life's too damn short to worry with that, Bella."

His words resonated within me as he pulled into the driveway of my house.

"Why are we here, Edward? I thought we'd simply go back to the office and decide on a plan of action," I told him as he looked at me.

"It's after hours…we can't do anything until the morning. I'm done with thinking about Marcus, as you should be too. And I'm sure the guy in the coffin isn't missing some so called second hand gift in the afterlife."

I was reluctant to agree with him, but he had a point. He'd been over to my home at least a hundred times, if not more. So, why was I feeling nervous as he followed me to the front door?

_You've come close to kissing him how many times today?_

"Are you hungry, Edward? I can order some food for us. You know I'm not exactly the best chef in the world," I told him as he stood across from me.

"No, I'm not interested in myself as I want to take care of you," he said. "Come on with me."

He took me by the hand and soon we were in the middle of my bathroom. I watched him pull back the shower curtain, and turn the dials, as the water began rushing into the tub.

"Where do you keep all of your girlie things?" he asked as he looked in the cabinets.

"Wait…what are you doing?"

"I'm taking inventory of your towels," he dead panned as he pulled out several bottles of bubble bath. "You've had a stressful day, and I'm going to make sure you are relaxed. I need you to have a clear mind so we can face this together, like we do with everything, Angel."

He filled the tub till it was about to overflow with bubbles.

"Now I'm going to give you some privacy, and get some food for us," he said before running his fingers over my face. "I'll be downstairs."

After he left, I took off the dress and lingerie before sliding into the warm water. He was right once again…I so needed this more than I let on, and he knew it. Edward _always_ knew what I needed, even if I wasn't about to say it out loud. Why was it so hard for me to openly admit that I'd fallen, head over heels, in love with him? He made sure I was safe, calling me when I left the office late, bringing lunch to me when I refused to leave to get food. I finally let all of the emotions of this insane day out as I soaked.

At some point, I needed to get out, so I wrapped my body in one of the plush towels he set on the counter for me. I searched through my lingerie drawer till my eyes landed on a sliver slip. I could smell dinner waiting for me when I came walking into the dining room, and there were two plates filled in a candlelit room. My hand went to cover my mouth.

"You went to so much trouble, Edward…I would have been happy with something less."

"Now if I had cooked all of this by myself from scratch and made the candles like Martha Stewart, then I would have gone to too much trouble," he said as he pulled out the chair. "Did you enjoy your bath?"

"Tremendously," I said as I lifted the glass to my lips.

We kept exchanging glances and smiles over dinner. He even ordered cheesecake for dessert, which he remembered as my favorite.

"You look considerably much more relaxed," he said as he fed me a bite. "I need to get you onto bed to make sure you have a god night's rest." He stood up, took my hand in his, and proceeded to carry me up to my room.

"I'm well aware that you can take yourself to bed, but you need someone to watch over you."

Exhaustion was hard to keep at bay, but when he laid me in my bed, I knew our moment was coming.

"Edward…don't leave me yet," I whispered as I felt him move that much closer.

"It's time we stopped fighting the attraction, Angel…you've been mine from the moment you walked into my life," he whispered next to my lips before lightly kissing them. I was soon swept up in how warm and soft his touch was. He cradled my face gently as I wrapped my arms around his neck. It was better than the way I imagined our first kiss. He took his time gently exploring my mouth, pulling back, yet returning back because neither one of us was able to get enough now. I let out a sigh when he held me next to his body.

"Why did we wait so long to do that?" I asked him as he ran his fingers through my hair.

"I don't know, but I'll admit that I did want to wait for the right time to kiss you."

"Looking back on it, I don't think it would have been as special or perfect had we done that in an elevator."

He let out a hearty laugh. "Yes, Bella, I knew you'd feel the same once you saw it my way. Now close your heavy brown eyes so I can wake up sleeping beauty in the morning."

"Wh…what do you mean?" I asked as I fought against sleep.

"I'll just be in the spare bedroom, catching up on forty winks…you seriously think I'm leaving now? You'd simply get out of bed, run after me, possibly fall down the stairs, and then where would we be?"

"Mmmmm, just sleep next to me, Edward," I blurted out half asleep.

I felt the blankets and sheets moving and then I felt his strong, warm arms pull me closer to him.

"Goodnight, my Angel," I heard him whisper after gently kissing my forehead. Not surprisingly, I slept better that night than I had in ages. The struggle no longer had the better of me, but I was more than willing to give my heart over to him.

**How did y'all like it? Please let me know your thoughts and feelings! XXOO**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2 **

**Disclaimer- I do not own Twilight or Moonlighting.**

**Wow! I'm just speechless over the response this fic has received. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart. Your reviews have overwhelmed me in the best of ways. I wouldn't be able to create this without my fabulous beta, Kitty Masen. And my prereaders, The DVS1 and momma2afan are the best. Love you all so very much!**

**EPOV**

Of all the women in the world, Bella Swan had to be the one that made me breathe hard. I'd spent the past six months dodging the unresolved sexual tension between us. And now I was currently holding her all too tempting body in my arms. She'd fucking tortured me all night long, but I'd asked for it after I settled in her bed.

Hope she didn't mind waking up to morning wood.

Yeah, I had to get out of this bed now before I let all of my urges out. I kissed the top of her head, went downstairs and fought with the Keurig for a few minutes. She didn't know that I'd taken the watch out of her bag last night while she was in bath heaven. It was the perfect distraction and the easiest way for me to get it while she was relaxing. But there was something else that I'd come across that shocked me…an old picture of the two of us in her bag. It was one that Angela took during the Christmas party. Every detail of that night came flooding back to my dirty mind…the way her dress fell to give me that peek of her fabulous cleavage…and the curve of her ass when she was next to me. Needless to say, I used up all of the hot water in the shower that night when I went home.

_Get your pervy brain back to the watch, Cullen. _

I dug through some of the drawers in the kitchen in hopes of finding a screwdriver to see if it needed a new battery. Bella is not the domestic type, so of course she wouldn't own any kind of tools. We'd be better off taking it to a pawn shop to get a look inside. It was such a piece of shit that an authentic jeweler would laugh his ass off of we asked him to examine it. Even I knew the limit to how well I could schmooze.

I went back up to her bedroom with coffee in hand, only to find her still sleeping, with the sheets off. The hem of that little scrap of sleepwear was moving further up, providing me a nice view of her…_curves_. Then she had to do it; Bella just had to moan my name in her sleep. Not just a small whimper or soft cry. It was the sound of her wanting to be hedonistically pleasured. Before I could let one of my fantasies come to fruition, I came to her side to wake her with a searing kiss.

Well, at least it was the start of one of my fantasies.

"Bella, come on and wake up. There are mysteries to solve, questions to ask, and fun times to be had by all."

"Mmmmm, oh god, Edward…did we, did you?" she asked as she sat up, looked at me, and placed her hand over her forehead.

"What…you mean did we have amazing, bed breaking sex? Or were you just dreaming?" I asked but she was not amused. "To give you a straight answer, no we didn't do anything last night, not that I didn't want to."

I lifted her dimpled chin to kiss her softly this time, only allowing myself a small taste of paradise. After last night, I could see us behind closed doors making out in between clients, making the most of our desks. Yet I had to reign in some control at this very moment.

"Go ahead and get dressed while I search for some nourishment in your kitchen," I told her as I pulled away. I knew it was the best thing for us right now, even if I wanted to give up my autographed Greg Maddux jersey to make out with her at this moment.

-T-

We were hardly in the office five minutes before Angela was knocking at my door.

"Mr. Cullen, I have a message from an older man by the name of Newton. He wants to talk to you about the services you and Miss Swan can offer," she said in her meek voice while staring at the floor.

"You know you don't have to be afraid to talk to me, Ang…you've been here for, what the past decade now. If there's something on your mind, spill it."

Her eyes were downcast on the floor. "I'm…I'm…I'm"

"You're what…an ex-nun? A serial killer? A vampire? Come on and tell me already."

"I'm pregnant, Mr. Cullen, and if you want me to resign, I can give you my two week notice now."

Tear began falling down her face; I needed to find a way to get to calm her ass down.

"Hey, Ang, it's going to be okay, and you can only take this one day at a time. Can I ask if the father knows about the baby?"

"Um…he left town about…a month ago. I haven't heard from him, but his number is still in my phone. What am I going to do?"

"You are going to take a few days off, go see your parents back in that town that was named after silverware, and it will be alright. How far along are you?" I asked as she stopped crying.

"I'm almost two months…will Miss Swan hate me?"

I put my arm around her shoulders as I went to the door. "Don't worry about her… I'll explain everything. All you need to do is chill the hell out, answer the phone, and plan on being MIA for a short time."

"Thank you, Mr. Cullen…you don't know how much this means to me," she said while turning to face me.

"You can do me a favor and name your son after me, okay?"

She nodded weakly while sliding through the door. I really hoped that Angela would grow some kind of backbone soon. After letting out a deep sigh, I walked over to my desk, looked at the message, and dialed the number of this Newton guy. After the events of yesterday, I could only imagine what would fall out of Pandora's Box and into our laps. He was a much older gentleman, speaking with a slight British accent. When I finally got a chance to ask him what he needed form us, he said he also had to talk with my partner. I put him on hold for a minute, called Bella, and she walked in with the kind of smile that made me wonder if she still had her panties on.

I could use all of my investigative methods to figure that out.

"Edward…quit ogling me long enough for us to get some work done. Mr. Newton is waiting to talk to us," she said as she slid near me.

"I'd like to do a hell of a lot more than ogle you, Angel," I told her as she looked over my shoulder with the receiver in her hand.

"Just like you told me in the elevator yesterday…let's take care of business first," she said before taking him off hold and putting him on speaker phone. "Good morning, Sir. This is Bella Swan speaking….how may my partner and I be of assistance for you?"

"Miss Swan and Mr. Cullen, there is a formal party tonight that my company is hosting, but, due to recent health issues, I can't attend it. There is a lovely young woman by the name of Heidi that I need for you to keep an eye on for me. Her behavior is questionable, and I've lost a considerable amount of trust in her."

"Do you mind if we know a few more details, Mr. Newton? Is she a coworker, a relative?"

"Heidi is, for lack of better words, my lover, and has been for the past few years. Other men are easily attracted to her because she's…wealthy and gorgeous. But lately, I'm not sure if she is a faithful as she once was. I'm able to pay whatever fee your agency requires, but a messenger will deliver it for me."

"Will you give me and Mr. Cullen a moment to confer please," she said while putting him back on hold. "What is it about us that draws in the people from the loony bin, Edward? This is the second time in twenty four hours that someone has asked us to partake in a case involving ex-lovers and broken hearts. Are we cursed?"

"No, not really. I think it has to do with the fact that mercury is in retrograde," I deadpanned. "Just look at it this way, Bella…these people, in spite of the fact that they have completely lost their minds, are more than willing to drop some dollars our way to find some peace of mind. You and I both know you'd shut down this place if it wasn't turning a profit."

"Yes, there would be no point in it, but I just find it odd that we have two similar situations on our hands now," she said while brushing her hair back. "I'm making the crazy assumption that you want to take this case on, even though we're still walking around with a dead man's watch."

"Now what kind of investigators would we be if we turned down another client just because we found our first client with a knife in his back?"

She let out a sigh of frustration before letting Newton know that we would be present at this mother of all gala events tonight. Bella transferred him to the business office to let them finish speaking with him about the financial details. During their conversation, I looked through the cabinet to see if I had a screwdriver, but I only found a broken hammer and a bent cork screw. I turned back to see her leaning back all the way in my chair.

"You know we need to get down to a pawn shop soon so we can find out what the deal is with Marcus's watch."

"Are you really serious about going down there? I've never set one toe in a place like that."

"Don't be a snob, Angel, and don't knock it till you try it."

She just shook her head as she got out from the chair.

"Edward, let's just get out of here before I change my mind about this."

Before I could let her walk out of the door, I pulled her close to me, dipped her backward, and kissed the hell out of her beautiful mouth. I let my tongue brush over hers just long enough to tease her, yet enough for her to know she was mine. When she was finally standing upright, she licked her lips and smiled at me.

"I'm glad that you could release some of that built up…anxiety," I told her. "Don't worry about fixing your lipstick, it would be a pointless exercise."

"I know I shouldn't like that…"

"Yes you should, Angel, you should like it as much as I do," I smirked as I led her out of the office.

-T-

She clung to me while we were in Decker Jewelry and Pawn with a death grip. Behind the counter, Ted or Todd or whatever his name is, was fiddling around with a rusty screwdriver. She would cast her eyes on him then back to me.

"Well…what we have here is a battery that is old as dirt and I think it's broken," he said as he examined the back closer. "But there is a series of numbers on the inside of this cover. Did you know that?"

"No we didn't know anything about that, did we Angel?" I asked her as I looked at her for a second. "It belonged to my wife's Uncle Morty until he recently passed away in a golfing cart accident on the ninth par. "

"May God rest his soul," she said while playing along with me. "It's all I have left of him."

Yeah, Bella could act her cute ass off when the occasion rose.

As he put the watch back together, Bella stepped outside to talk on her phone. I kept my eyes on her since she stood out among the patronage of the establishment.

"I can only give you about three dollars at the most for this, but it seems the two of you have an attachment to this family treasure."

"Yeah, it's a treasure alright," I said sarcastically under my breath as my phone rang. She was looking at me as I answered it. "What's up?"

"There is a very odd person out here, a woman that keeps looking at your car," she whispered. "Something about her behavior is off, Edward. Please tell me you are done because I need you to come out here."

I nodded at her, turned off the phone, and grabbed the watch before walking out next to her. There was a woman across the street wearing a hooded jacket that was absolutely ridiculous. It was far too warm today to wear. We made eye contact before she ran off, and like the determined fool I was, I ran after her. After a few blocks, she tripped, screamed, but managed to get back up and disappear into an alley. I was only able to get a good look at her face, but it looked like five miles of back road. Bella was waiting for me by the car when I came back.

"Are you alright?" she asked as I unlocked the doors.

"Yeah, I'm fine, but Miss Congeniality didn't want to hang out long enough for me to get her autograph," I said as we slid into the seats and I drove off.

-T-

Call me over protective, but I sure as hell wasn't going to let Bella out of my sight when we left the office. Thank god she wasn't the kind of woman that would put up a fight about that. It didn't take a rocket scientist to explain how dangerous our profession was from time to time. It was knocked up a notch lately so I wasn't about to risk her safety.

Since I was a glutton for punishment, I decided to change into the black suit I had for this party at her house in her room. As I was fidgeting with the tie, she came walking out, wearing a kick-ass dress that left little to my pervy imagination.

"Is that really what you're going to wear tonight?"

"Actually it was either this or my nun's habit, Edward…what else am I going to wear?" she deadpanned as she straightened my tie. "We'll be together all night, so I'm expecting you to keep watch over me anyway. You know I'm finding that side of you more inviting with each passing day."

I placed both of my hands on her stunning face. "Angel, don't think for a second that I would let another person harm you. We're partners in almost every sense of the word…and I'm serious when I say I fucking need you."

She blinked several times and I didn't hesitate to capture her lips in a deep kiss. Her arms snaked around my waist when I angled her head to explore her mouth deeper. I let my tongue massage over hers languidly until we needed some air. She let out a moan that went straight to my cock.

"My, my, my gorgeous girl…did I just make your toes curl?"

"How do you do that to me? It just keeps getting stronger every time," she said while I brushed my lips over her forehead. "I'd have to add liar to my resume if I didn't say that I need you now more than ever, Edward."

"Now that we have that out in the open, we can get out of here. The sooner we head over to this shindig to collectively dazzle the top executives, the sooner we can come back and explore our needs."

She opened her mouth to say something, but instead closed it, took my hand in hers, and guided me to the car..

-T-

Bella and I were posing as newly hired public relations representatives for Newton, Incorporated, and we were expected to attend the party tonight. The woman we were hunting down was, according to his description, well endowed with long brown hair. She and I kept scanning the crowd for her when a poorly dressed man stumbled over to us.

"Glad to know that the boss man hired some new faces. Just between us, the revenue for the company has gone so far south that it'll take a miracle for it to bounce back. I'm Michael by the way."

"I'm Masen and this lovely lady by my side is Marie," I said as Bella shook his hand. "How long have you worked for Mr. Newton?"

We conversed for several minutes about the details, and it turned out that the corporation was nearly bankrupt. Red flags flew up in my mind almost as fast as images of her lean legs wrapped around me. Why was he throwing a lavish party if he didn't have enough money coming in to cover his bills? Then there was an even greater question…why was he spending money on us to follow his lover?

Yeah, we had a fucking mess on our hands, and we needed a mop and bucket of epic proportions to clean it up.

This guy kept chatting as though I was his new best friend when a woman matching the description Newton gave us started staring at me. Absentmindedly, I paced my arm around Bella's shoulders, as if to say that my interests were fully on her. Everything about her looked fake, plastic, but she just kept looking at me. Suddenly, I realized that she could have been the sister of the woman on the street today.

Things that make you go…uuugggghhhhh.

She walked past us towards the ladies room, and Bella looked at me with that confident sparkle I adored. "Pardon me for a few minutes, Masen…I need to powder my nose."

It was just like her to go after the information we needed. In the meantime, Michael pestered me to have a drink at the bar. Who was I to forgo free alcohol?

"Can you tell me anything about the brunette with long hair that just passed us?" I asked him as he sipped his martini. "Which department does she work for?"

"You must mean Heidi," he began as he squinted his beady eyes. "She's in upper management, and I'm surprised you haven't met her before tonight. Although she's rarely in her office since she travels for the company frequently. No one knows very much about her trips other than Mr. Newton."

"Now, if I heard you correctly, the company that just hired us is tanking as we speak. And yet this woman in the upper echelon is traveling all over the globe?"

"Yeah…go figure but if you want to know an insider tip…I think she and the boss might have a thing for each other."

The more this guy drank, the looser his lips became. He downed the rest of his drink, ordered another one, and then I saw Bella walking out of the bathroom.

"This party has gotten old, Masen…would you please escort me to my car?" she asked and I was more than happy to get away from this half- drunk ass. We made our way through the crowd, out the door, but lo and behold, there was Heidi standing next to the car…with a gun in her hands.

"What the hell is it with people trying to keep us this close to the grim reaper lately?" I asked as Bella held onto me tightly.

"Give it to me…give me the fucking watch," she said while dangling the pistol.

"It's Heidi right?" I said with my hands up in the air. "Do you know that Newton has something special planned for the two of you?"

Her expression changed as I said the bull shit she longed to hear about him.

"What has he said to you?"

"He wanted us to follow you to make sure you were feeling your best. You're boarding a plane in a few days so you can go to the Cayman Islands. He has several bank accounts that have more money in them than a show dog can jump over."

"Are you for real…how do I know if you're telling the truth?"

"Because he told me you'd never need the watch, Heidi," Bella said. "And…and I have it in black and white. He signed the contract for us, and I have it in my purse. But you need to set the gun down in order for me to show it to you."

Bella set up the perfect trap for her…fuck she was as brilliant as Heidi was dense.

Money was apparently enough of a motivating factor to make her drop her weapon on the ground, but, as soon as she was near us, it was my golden opportunity. She never expected fifty thousand volts of electricity pulsing through her body. With as much plastic as she had in her body, I was expecting her to melt from the heat.

"Come on Bella…get in the car now!" I screamed as a few people came out of the back door.

She was breathing hard as I pulled out into the streets.

"You don't know how much of a turn on it is to hear that sound. Panting becomes you, Angel."

"I can't believe _that_ is on you mind right now. We could have died back there and joined Marcus in the morgue. I don't look good in a body bag, Edward."

"Didn't I tell you that I wasn't going to let anyone harm you? She was easy to distract, like a squirrel with a shiny toy, a kid with a new birthday present, a man with a new baseball season. Besides, I have no plans on dying any time soon."

I took her hand in mine and gave her a warm smile.

"I think I've had all the drama I can handle for one day…is there any way I can convince you to hold me tonight again while I'm sleeping?"

"So long as you don't mind my roaming hands," I said as I brought her hand to my mouth.

"If I did, I wouldn't have told you I need you," she confessed, and after I heard that, I floored it to her home.

-T-

She rolled over to look at me as I kissed her shoulder softly.

"I've wanted to tell you this for some time, Edward…I've never felt safer than when you hold me."

I couldn't help but grin at her when she said that to me.

"Angel, I've watched after you since you walked into my office. No other woman has captivated me in quite the way you have."

She ran her fingers over my face, my jaw, and down my neck.

"You make me want to open my heart…I'm not afraid to do it either," she said as she pulled my head closer to hers. Her soft lips moved over mine sensually before tracing my lips with her tongue. Then we began to hungrily explore each other's mouths…tasting, nibbling, getting lost in the sensations. We'd pull back for a moment, but there was this insatiable desire that we shared. It was growing stronger, but I moved my mouth to kiss her face lightly.

"If we keep going, there is a great chance that we'll give in to our desires, Bella. I want to wait a little while longer," I whispered.

"Yeah..waiting might be a good thing for us," she said looking up at me.

"I can't fucking lie to you. It's taking every ounce of restraint I have not to pleasure you into the wee hours of the morning. This is what I've wanted for the past six months…the two of us and scraps of material."

"And we will have everything we want soon because we can't fight it much longer," she said next to my lips before kissing them softly. There was something about the way this one felt…a certain emotion came over me, one that I felt in my heart. Before I could figure it out, she moved back, smiled at me, and asked me to hold her.

Minutes later, Bella was asleep, but I had a new question to find the answer for.

Was I falling in love with her?

**So how did y'all like that chapter? Please let me know your thoughts! XXOO**


	3. Chapter 3 The Fascination

**Chapter 3 The Fascination**

**Disclaimer- I do not own Twilight or Moonlighting.**

**I'm deeply appreciative of your response to this fic! My readers are truly amazing, as well as my fabulous beta, Kitty Masen. You always make my stories that much better. To The DVS1 and momma2afan, thank you both for your help. Let's see what's going on now…**

**BPOV**

The elevator came to a stop, and we got off, Edward's arm still wrapped around my waist. He'd been very protective of me more lately than in the past few months. While we'd made out this morning, I knew we needed to reign in our growing desire. Not to mention that we still had a murder to solve and those numbers on the inside of the watch made no logical sense. I knew he was just as concerned as I was, but at the moment, Edward was singing "My Girl" almost too loudly for my comfort.

"Why are you so cheerful this morning?"

He stopped singing as we got to the door of the agency, looked down at me, and peeked over his glasses.

"First of all, I spent a second night with the woman that fascinates me, and secondly, why not be cheerful? The birds are flying around in the sky, squirrels are collecting nuts, and we have a new day to enjoy."

"Fascinate?"

"Yes, you heard me, Bella…fascinate. Do you need me to look it up in the dictionary for you?

I shook my head as I walked to my office, and of course, he followed me…smirking. He made himself at home in one of my chairs, leaned back, and propped his feel on the edge of my desk.

"Are we having fun yet?" he deadpanned.

I sat across from him and rolled my eyes. "We really need to focus on solving the mystery of the numbers on the inside of the watch. Obviously, there is some sort of significance, but alas, we can't ask Marcus about that since he's the one in the coffin now."

"The numbers could be a code, but we need more details about him or Chelsea," I said as an idea struck me. "She's got to be at the visitation today, Edward…we have to go talk to her."

"There's only one problem…she'll want to know how we know about the watch. If Chelsea finds out that I swiped that piece of shit from her boyfriend's vehicle into the afterlife, she'll go off on us big time, Angel."

"Damn it," I muttered under my breath. "Then what do you suggest?"

He paced around the room, running his fingers through his hair.

"We have to play it off…ask her if there was anything that Marcus ever gave her that was significant. If she really loved that watch, then she might mention it."

"But what if she never knew about the numbers?" I asked as I placed my hand under my chin. "This is giving me a headache and it's not even ten yet…where is Angela by the way?"

"Would you like the truth or an entertaining embellishment?"

I simply stared at him until he began talking.

"I sent her home to spend some time with her folks because she's going to hear the pitter patter of small feet in a few months."

"What are you talking about?" I asked. "Are you trying to tell me that Angela is pregnant?"

"That's exactly what I'm trying to tell you. I would have hired a mime, but our budget is tight."

It hit me like a ton of bricks because I never pictured her expecting a child, much less ever having sex. The more I thought about it, the harder it became not to laugh, and he saw me trying to stifle my giggles.

"Yeah, I know what's in that dirty little mind of yours, Angel. Do you know how much freaking effort it took on my part when she divulged that little nugget of information?"

"But I feel terrible about this. Why should we have a laugh at her expense, Edward? Doesn't that make us the two worst people on the planet right now?"

He sat beside me on the edge of the desk and turned my face to meet his.

"No, I think you're a stressed out, drop dead gorgeous woman who needed to relax for a few minutes. I already knew I was a terrible person."

"Not terrible…I prefer smoldering, handsome, intelligent…I could go on, you know."

His mouth moved inches closer to mine.

"How well I know you could, but I'd rather you put those lips to a different use."

Before I knew what was happening, I was swept up into a knee buckling kiss that took my breath away. His tongue traced over mine slowly, and then he showed me how possessive he was. I'd never been held that tightly before while sitting upright. Part of me wanted to give in to our mutual need for each other, but we had to stop. He pulled back, only to peck my swollen lips several times as I gasped for air. Once I looked into his eyes, I could have sworn there was something _different_. Yet I lacked enough time to figure out what that was.

"We…we have to get to the funeral home, again, Edward," I said when I came to my senses.

"Trust me, I know damn well what we have to do, but kissing you was something I _needed_," he said while tenderly rubbing his fingers over my face. "And I know I wasn't the only one, not from the way you're still holding onto me."

After I moved my arms down, I let out a deep sigh. "Like one of us always says, let's get business out of the way first."

He walked across the room to the door, looked back at me, and gave me a smile.

"Just so you'll know, Bella, when this case comes to a close, we are taking a vacation together."

"Oh really? What if I don't like the place you chose?"

"By the time we get there, the location will be the farthest thing from your mind," he said leaving me to wonder how soon we could solve this murder.

-T-

Since the visitation was not going to be until the following day, Edward and I took it upon ourselves to visit the grieving widow at her mother's house. It had taken both of us the better part of the day to locate exactly where Chelsea was staying, but it was well worth it. We were presently sitting in her mother's living room as she came walking in with a heavy look on her face. After we introduced ourselves as agents from the life insurance company, we sat down to get her story.

"Marcus and I were married for almost five years, and I was his third wife. We met through mutual friends, but the thing that drew me in was his heart. I've never met a man who was so…forgiving and loving."

Edward and I exchanged a quick glance.

"What exactly do you mean by forgiving, Chelsea?" I asked as she adjusted her skirt.

"He was able to overlook my flaws very easily. Like whenever I would light up a cigarette, he'd look at me and say 'Sweetheart, those thing's will kill you, but I can't force you to stop.' That was just his nature. He'd look the other way of I bought too much on a shopping excursion. But we had tons of money. It makes no sense why he'd be afraid to spend it."

"Speaking of money," he began, "did he like to give you gifts on occasion?"

"Sometimes he did, but I usually gave him gifts. There was a watch that he received as a present from me for our anniversary that he wore constantly until it broke. I took it to a repair shop, but he no longer wore it after that. Marcus said it was not the same anymore, and I'm desperate to find it. A friend of mine was going to clean it so I could let him be buried with it," she told us.

I could see the wheels spinning in his mind since he was quiet.

"Thank you, Chelsea. We appreciate that you spent a few minutes talking with us. I know this is a difficult time for you, but we wanted to get some information to take back to the office," I said as we stood up.

"You're very welcome, Miss Hayes. Do you happen to know when I'll see a check? He had several premiums. I just have some debt I need to pay off within the next few weeks, and his assets have been frozen by the bank for some reason."

"I can't say for sure, but this is actually our last day working for the company. Mr. Addison and I will be taking a new career path."

"Yes, we're going to move to colonial Williamsburg and become part of the guided tour," he said as she opened the front door. "She already has her costume ready, can you believe it?"

Chelsea simply bid us good bye with the wave of her hand. We were both quiet as we got into the car, but one of us had to say something.

"That woman is a greedy, narcisstic, class A bitch. She has a lot of nerve to ask about getting money even before her dead husband is in the ground," I exclaimed.

"Yeah, you hit the nail on the head with that one."

"Seriously, I think she's insane, but she did say something that I know you've been thinking about."

"Chelsea said many things that I've been pondering, but you and I know that she didn't give that watch back to Marcus. She might have taken it to a jeweler. No, I believe she did do that, and she discovered that there were the set of numbers on the back. He had it put there for a reason."

There were too many lose ends to this case; nothing was making logical sense.

"This is so damn frustrating," I told him as he drove further into town. "Where are we going?"

He slid the watch out of his coat pocket. "You and I are going to speak with a few jewelers today and find the person that opened this up for Chelsea. Maybe if you play your cards right, there might be a bauble for you by the end of the day."

"Only you would have that in mind," I told him as he parked the car.

-T-

It wasn't until we walked into the third store that we had some luck. The woman behind the counter remembered Chelsea mainly because she was in a hurry. There was a man that came with her when she picked up the watch after it was repaired. She didn't get a good look at the man since he had his head turned most of the time, but she told us he had a tattoo on his upper right arm of a cross.

"Did you happen to notice anything…odd about the watch?" Edward asked.

"Everything was fine, except that there were some random numbers on the inside of the back plate. I've never seen that before, and when I mentioned it to her, she took off out of here as fast as possible. The guy that was with her was hot on her trail too."

"Did the watch work when she brought it in?"

"Yes, it was fully functional and the battery was fine. Like I said the only thing that was out of place was the series of numbers. Pardon me, but I have a customer I need to greet," she said before walking away.

He let out a breath of air. "Chelsea's been up to big business, and I wonder if lover boy was in on the trying to discover the mystery."

"She knew about the numbers but said nothing to us earlier. That means she's keeping a secret because she conveniently left out that detail when we talked with her earlier."

"And she's looking for money, which is the greatest motivator," he said while looking down into a case. "It makes people act differently, make choices that they normally would avoid, make them say things they don't realize they're saying."

"It sounds more like you're talking about love," I said as my hand drifted over his.

Our eyes met for several seconds, and there was _that_ look again. It went through me, sent shivers up my spine, and reduced me to a quivering mess. Edward knew exactly what he was doing to me, and I sure as hell was not about to stop him. He caught the attention of one of the employees because he wanted to see specific necklace. I watched him as his eyes went from it towards me, and then he said he wanted it.

"How can you afford this?" I asked him after he paid for the purchase. "I know what you make so there's no way you can hide it from me."

"Bella, I have a bonus coming soon because we're going to solve both cases."

"What?! What do you mean you have a bonus coming? Do you have a second job I know nothing about?" I asked as we walked toward the car.

"Are you kidding me? Since I have my hands full, mostly with you, a second job is totally out of the question," he said while putting his hands on my face. "I have faith in our combined abilities, Angel…faith that you and I can get to the bottom of this mystery."

I drew in a deep breath of air. "I have faith, Edward…it's just that…"

Before I could finish my sentence, his mouth was moving over mine in a deep, demanding kiss. Of course he'd have to distract me at this very moment when I was unsure, but it was the best way to do that. He barely let his tongue brush over mine when he stopped, lifted my chin, and looked into my eyes.

"I needed to get you out of your mind. Now get your very cute ass in the car so we can get on into the next thrilling part of this job."

We rode in silence for a few minutes while I tried to determine what the next step was in this insane situation. Why was he hiding a series of numbers in the watch? That was the biggest question, next to who killed him? But he didn't have the watch when he was killed…hell we had it.

I let out a small gasp.

"Edward…what if the person that killed Marcus discovers that we have the watch now? We're good as six feet under if that's the case."

"Do we need to jump into the time machine?" he began while looking over at me. "I wasn't the only one in the room when I swiped it from the drawer. No one saw us, Bella, and everyone on this side of the western hemisphere believes it's buried under the ground."

"I just don't see her letting that watch slip out of her hands that fast. She even admitted that she wanted to let a _friend_ clean it before she buried it with him. You and I know who that person is."

"Yeah, the first corpse we ran into."

After letting out a groan, I admitted to him that I was exhausted. He sped up considerably in the direction of my house. Once he pulled into the front, I took his hand and we walked toward the door. No sooner than we were inside than I was grabbed by someone from behind and I felt the tip of a gun at my head.

"Took you two long enough to get here. Where the fuck is the watch? Either I get it or she gets it."

Edward held his hands up. "You don't want to kill her, not when I can rectify this situation so easily."

"I don't have any time for fucking jokes…give it to me or your girlfriend gets a bullet in her head."

Immediately, I began trying to memorize as many details about this person as possible. He had a dark voice, not one that I recognized. His fingers were short, as well as his arms, and he wasn't nearly as tall as Edward. I did all of this in the span of time it too for him to unclasp the watch that was around his right arm.

"Here…I had it with me ever since we took it. Now you can get the fuck out of here," he said while tossing it in his direction. He wasn't able to catch it, but he bent down, and when he did, I managed to stomp on his foot. He screamed in agony once my heel went into this shoe and then dropped the gun. I grabbed it while Edward landed several good punches as they rolled around on the floor. He had all of the ability to hit as well as an old drunk man stumbling out of a bar. I finally grabbed a lamp and whacked him over the head. Once he was knocked out, Edward tied the electrical cord around his hands. After handing him the gun, I called the police and, thankfully, they were here within minutes.

Basically, we told the boys in blue the truth in our statements…this stranger broke in to my house and was waiting to rob and kill us. No, neither one of us knew who he was, but we shared a knowing look before they left. I asked one of the officers if the man had any tattoos on his arms that they could see since he had on a short sleeved shirt. Once I explained that there was a man in my past that stalked me and had a tattoo, he more than happily complied with me. My would be killer indeed had a tattoo on his upper right arm of a cross, but I told the officer that was not the man who stalked me. I breathed a heavy sigh of relief when they left the property. Edward waked over to me as I stood with my back to the door.

"Most men are intimidated by strong women, but I on the other hand, find them to be mesmerizing," he said while running his fingers over my cheek. "You didn't flinch, didn't stumble… didn't even think twice about hitting him with that lamp, did you?"

"I was mad as at hell at him, thinking that he could just break into my house the way he did. He deserved every bit of rage. And I have a strong suspicion he's the guy that was with Chelsea in the jewelry store."

"Bella….does a butter fly? Does a bear shit in the woods? Of course it has to be the same guy that was with her. She's as in need of cash as the United States government is, so it doesn't take a genius to figure out that she had a role in this."

"But how did he know we had it, Edward? Someone had to see us steal it."

He looked around the room as if he could find the answer in the shantung curtains.

"We _will _get to the bottom of this, I promise we will. Tomorrow morning, we'll go over all of the details, leaving no stone unturned. There's no way I can solve this or any other case by myself anymore, Angel."

There it was again…that look in his eyes. His voice even changed when he was talking.

"I know what you are saying, but you're implying more than that," I began as I walked upstairs. "There's something _different_ about us, and I can't put my finger on it." He was beside me with his hand grazing over my lower back. In the back of my mind, there was this keen sense that I was falling for him. Maybe it had been there longer than I was willing to admit.

He stopped me before I walked into the bedroom. "I can tell you exactly what it is, Bella Swan. I've watched you every damn second we've been in that office, smelled your perfume when you strolled past me, and had every fantasy allowed under the sun about you. But it's way more than that now…I want nothing more than fall at your feet and worship you. Why do you think I bought that necklace today?"

He took a slender gray box out of his pocket, opened it, and began sliding it around my neck. While I was speechless, my mind was reeling over his words, his emotion filled words. I knew he was waiting for a response, but all he got at the moment was a series of moans as he kissed down my neck. His strong arms were soon around me, drawing me closer to his body.

"Tell me what's on your mind?" he whispered.

"It's impossible for me to say no to you. There has never been another man that has made me want to give my heart over. When I walked into the agency, I never expected to find you, Edward." Then I turned to face him directly. "I want _us_, not just the fantasy. Claim me as your own because I'm falling hard for you."

The words finally slipped out and we both heard them. It was only a matter of breaths before we went into the bedroom, closed the door, and placed lingering kisses on each other's mouth until we needed air. I walked into the bathroom to change into a slip when I began to wonder how long we would be able to fight the physical temptation. He had the sheets turned down when I returned, and a killer smile on his face.

"You have something on you mind, Angel…spill it."

"I think it might be a good idea for me to tell you that I'm on birth control," I said as we lay near each other. "We can't…I can't resist you much longer."

He moved over on top of me. "Let it be known that I'm ready whenever you are, but if you think I'll stop kissing your lips…forget about that."

"Mmmmm, it'd be a crime for either one of us to ever stop."

"Then why are we still talking?"

"I'm not really sure."

Slowly, he leaned in to allow his lips to brush over mine before letting his tongue explore my mouth greedily. He swallowed every one of my moans. We'd only pause for quick moments before I'd suck his lips and we would be swept up into another kiss. We tempted each other long enough until the day caught up with me. I was firmly snuggled on top of him, listening to his heart beat as I drifted off to sleep, when I could have sworn I heard him whisper the phrase 'I love you.'


	4. Chapter 4 The Confession

**Chapter 4 The Confession**

**Disclaimer – I do not own Twilight or Moonlighting.**

**So far, so good, and I'm amazed at how much y'all enjoy this fic. I simply love my readers, my beta, and my prereaders. Here is a huge thank you to Kitty Masen for your help. And I'd be lost without The DVS1 and momma2afan. I have so much admiration for the help you all give me. Now back to the case.**

**EPOV**

Her brows were scrunched up as she leaned over the desk, and the intensity of her gaze was downright sexy. I was supposed to be thinking about the series of numbers in front of me, but the way she licked her lips was criminal.

"Bella…can you please stop doing that for a few minutes, please?"

She looked up, unaware that she had done anything, but then she gave me _that_ grin.

"I have no idea what you mean, Edward. The only thing I'm trying to do is to decide what these numbers mean."

We'd stared at them for over an hour this morning, and had considered multiple solutions.

Bank accounts, license plate numbers, and telephone numbers were some of the ones we tried.

Just as I opened my mouth to say something, the phone interrupted me. Bella picked it up, and mouthed 'Newton' in my direction. They talked for a few brief moments, but from what I overheard, he was in the lobby of the building. After she hung the phone up, our eyes met.

"I'm sure he's going to say something to us about Heidi. Neither one of us has been in touch with the man. What do we tell him?"

"We could always go with the truth, unless if he already knows that his girlfriend is a bonafide fruitcake," I said as she ran her fingers through her hair. "Angel, the man already had his doubts about her. Perhaps he just wanted verification from another set of eyes."

We both stood up when there was a knock on the door. The older man came walking in, leaning on a cane for support. After shaking both of our hands, he sat in front of her desk while we were behind it. His eyes landed on the watch, and then he looked up at us.

"Does this belong to either one of you?" he asked.

"It's a piece of evidence we're using to investigate a case. Why do ask, Mr. Newton?"

He was nervously shifting in the chair, trying not to look at us.

"It…it bears an uncanny resemblance to one…that my father left to me…when he died."

"With all due respect, Mr. Newton, I think you're blowing more smoke than a congressman at a White House dinner," I told him. "I can tell you for a fact that this watch is barely worth the price of a gallon of gasoline. You're keeping something from us…it's written all over your face."

His fingers twitched nervously and the movement of his foot was making his leg bounce.

"Please tell us what you know, Sir. We need a break in the case, and your help would be invaluable," she said.

"If I tell you what I know, then I need some information," he responded and we let him know to continue. "Marcus Voltouri was my business partner a few years ago. He owned half of the company, and I owned the other half. Times were good back then. We had a great cash flow, so much that I saved a large amount in a brief case. I told him that I did that for precautionary reasons. Marcus never questioned me, even bought a safe for me to keep the case in."

He stopped for a moment to let out a deep cough, and then he looked back up at us.

"Please continue," Bella said.

"At one point, he told me that he had the combination for both the briefcase and the safe engraved on the inside of that watch. Since I had the money, he would have the combination. It was the perfect partnership, until his wife, Chelsea wanted him to spend more time with her."

"What happened to the partnership?"

"They left the country for a few weeks, but when we spoke again, Marcus said he wanted to be more of a silent business partner. He pulled out some of his funds, but the company was fine until a year ago. We've had more losses than profit, and I've traced everything back to Heidi. That was why I came to see you all."

She and I looked at each other as if we'd discovered crude oil. The pieces of the puzzle were starting to come together, but did he know about Chelsea's partner in crime?

"Newton, she held us at gun point the other night after we made a getaway out of that soiree you held. If it hadn't been for my fast reflexes and fifty thousand volts of electricity, she would have gotten access to this piece of crap," I mentioned.

"She's known about the safe for some time, but I didn't know that she knew about the watch."

"We need to get access to the safe," Bella said as she stood up. "Please, Mr. Newton, we need to go to your house. I'm sure you want access to that money."

"Besides," I said as we walked out of the office, "You can attempt to use an explosive on it, but what would be the point if you damaged the goods in the case?"

She shot me a look that let me know she caught onto my sarcasm.

-T-

Upon arrival at Chez Newton, we came to discover that his office was completely ransacked. Papers, manila folders, and flash drives were haphazardly thrown across the room. There were shattered frames scattered on the floor, and the desk chair was in a position it was not meant to be in. The old man looked sick as he took in the view. I kept Bella's hand in mine as we walked around the room. He tossed off a few things that were on the leather couch and sat down.

"The safe…it's gone," he said while pointing his hand in the direction of the book case across from him. "I kept it on the very bottom shelf because it was so heavy. Whoever took it had to have some source of strength. I was in here before I left to come to see you."

Several thoughts went through my head at the same time. Heidi knew about the watch, as well as Chelsea, but was it possible that Heidi knew about the numbers? Chelsea was desperate for money, so much that she had her goon try to kill us for it. One of them had a hand in stealing the safe, but I wasn't sure which one would be able to pull it off. Normally a safe can weigh anywhere from a few pounds to a few hundred pounds. In this case, I suspected it weighed at least thirty to fifty pounds. Yet the rest of the house was in pristine condition. This person was specifically looking for it.

"When was the last time you saw Heidi?" Bella asked as she took her phone out.

"The day of the party, probably around lunchtime. She came by to let me know that everything was ready and to let me know how much she missed me. At first, I thought she was going to try to convince me to come with her. Apparently, she had other things on her mind."

He looked like a broken man when the police arrived a few minutes later. I told took Bella aside and explained everything that I'd deduced over the past few minutes. She agreed that we needed to make a return trip to Chelsea's mom's house this afternoon. Newton understood why we had to get out of there.

"Which one do you honestly believe has the safe?" she asked as I drove away from the house.

"Heidi knew the exact location, yet Chelsea had the greatest motivation. One of them had to be able to get in his place, tear apart that office, and get it out in a short amount of time. We know who had the key, so my money is on Heidi."

She let out a deep breath. "Is it possible they could be working together? Since Marcus and Newton were working together, they could have met and formed some sort of friendship."

"That would be more like an alliance of the damned," I told her as I got a quick glance of her bare leg. They were nearly wrapped around me as we made out this morning in bed. I could still hear her soft moans and whimpers as she felt how hard I was. When I claimed her mouth over and over, she arched her back upward, and we were minutes away from paradise. I took one more fleeting glance over at the woman that owned me.

"Having dirty thoughts again, Edward?" she said while turning to look in my direction.

"Are there any other kind of thoughts to have when you're around?"

"How long are you going to keep them to yourself?" she asked and I let out a hard cough.

"Damn, Bella…you should never say anything like that when I'm operating a vehicle. There are pedestrians that I need to watch for."

She was now laughing as I tried to concentrate. Why did she have to do this _now_? I shook my head as I drove toward the gated community. When I parked the car, I looked directly at her.

"Listen to my words," I began. "It's only a matter of time before I have you naked underneath me, writhing in pleasure, and screaming words that would make your mom disown you. It might not be tonight, but I'll make damn well sure it happens soon. No man should have to endure the torture you put me through."

"What? Are you serious? I _torture_ you?"

"In spades, Angel, but it's the only kind that is worth it in the end. Now let's pretend we're David Addison and Maddie Hayes one more time," I told her as I opened the door. In my head, I rehearsed the lines I would need when Chelsea greeted us. Instead, it was her mom that invited us inside, and she did not meet us during our last visit. When I asked to speak with her daughter, she nearly collapsed in a chair.

"She got a phone call this morning, but Chelsea wouldn't tell me who it was or any important information. I've never seen her that upset or panicked in her life. Even when Marcus died, she was not this scared. She even packed a bag and told me she was leaving town."

"And you don't know who this person was that called her?"

"No, I have no idea who it would be…her world revolved around her husband."

I felt a pang of sadness for this poor, delusional woman. She didn't know that her own flesh and blood was a lying, money hungry adulteress. As she gripped the arm of the chair, there was a heavy knock at the door.

"Now who took the safe?" Bella asked me after her mom left the room.

"I still say it was Heidi because she would have had time because that phone call scared the ever living shit out of Chelsea."

We overheard the sound of a conversation that two police officers were having with her as we made our way to the front door.

"Your daughter is a person of interest in an arrest we made last night. Two people were held at gunpoint and nearly robbed, and we believe she had some role in it. We need to speak with her as soon as possible. Are you absolutely certain that she did not tell you where she was going?"

"Chelsea was in such a hurry that she didn't mention any place. Her phone was left on the dresser. The only thing I can tell you is that she drove out of here in her Hummer. Can you please excuse me?"

Bella and I shared a look as we walked past them without calling any attention to ourselves. We had more twists in this case than Facebook had giraffe profiles. She let out this groan when we got in the car.

"I know we are this close to breaking this case wide open, Edward, but how the hell are we going to find her? And then we still have to find the freaking safe. Yeah, by the time we're done with this, I am taking a very long break."

"She can't go very far, especially without a phone or money. And due to the fact that the she is now a person of interest to the police, they'll be on her ass almost as fast as I am on yours."

"Don't you see it, though?" she said. "Chelsea had that guy to come to _my_ house. She knows where I live, so it's very possible she could be there waiting for us. Do we really want to relive last night over again?"

"Only the sexy times in the bedroom, Angel," I responded with a brow lift as I looked over at her. "Yes, she knows where we both live and work, but look at how we detained that shidiot last night. We're a fabulous team…remember we're the power duo."

Bella rolled her eyes and I took her hand in mine. She was an unbelievably strong woman, but this case was testing her limits. Hell, I was on my toes now more than ever, but I knew the reason why. I had become fully aware that I was in love with her last night. When she was lying on my chest, I'd never seen her look as beautiful as she did in that moment. Her lips were swollen and her body was wrapped entirely around me.

I was in love with Bella.

It was that simple, and because of that reason, there was this all-consuming need to keep her safe. Too many guns had been flashed in our faces lately. Even though I was used to this lifestyle, she was still getting used to the mayhem that surrounded me on a regular basis.

At first, I was unsure if she wanted me to take her to her house, but she said nothing when I put the car in park.

"Home sweet home, Angel," I said before brushing my lips over her fingers.

"It's only that way because you're here," she replied.

We walked to the door together, and as soon as it was closed, I had her pressed next to it.

"It was too obvious for her to come to your place," I said as our foreheads touched. "Now if you'll allow me, I want to make those cute toes curl again."

Her hold on me was tight, as if she could not get enough of my very presence. When my tongue slid into her mouth, I could feel her body shivering in my arms. Every single sound that she made increased the desire I had for her. My lips moved over hers, but when she sucked on my lower one, it was all I could do to stand up. I pulled back so I could get a full view of the expression in her eyes. There was desire, but something else was even more present…love.

"Edward, you can't just kiss me like that and not take me to bed."

"Now where else would I take you right now?" I asked while scooping her stellar body up into my arms. "You deserve gilded edges and pillow softness and I want to be the one who gives you all of that."

"I like when a man knows that I prefer the finer things in life," she said while I pushed open the bedroom door with my shoulder. "But it's not just any man that I want now."

"Then tell me who it is that you want?" I asked with a smirk.

She moved over to me and began loosening my tie.

"I tend to like a man who is tall, lanky, has thick hair that I can play with, and a sharp mind. Intelligence is a big turn on for me, but more than that," she said while unbuttoning my shirt, "I want someone that I can love."

Holy shit…I was not expecting to hear that from her.

"Bella, please tell me that I'm not confused—"

She pressed her mouth next to mine before I could finish whatever the hell I started to say. Her hands were in my hair as I began dragging her zipper down her dress. We were getting lost in another deep kiss, but I needed to know what she meant by her words.

I took her face in my hands which allowed for her dress to fall off her body.

"Please tell me you felt that just now," she said as I opened my mouth to talk. "And yes, Edward…I love you and I'm in love with you."

Even though I was already to make my own confession, I was reveling in the fact that she had said _those_ words to me. It was one thing to say them to a person, but coming from her, it made me feel so fucking alive. I drew her closer to me and I lifted her chin.

"I love you, Angel," I murmured next to her pillow soft lips before capturing them in a slow kiss. We took our time exploring each other's mouths. The hunger built languidly as she sucked on my bottom lip and I grabbed at her ass. Every inch of her body was succulent, and all mine.

She brought out my possessive side.

I laid her back on the bed to take in her beauty. While there were plenty of women who had tried to impress me, Bella never had a reason to do that. Her authenticity shone through constantly. I didn't need a woman who was devoid of intellect.

"You know I'm getting rather…lonely over here," she said as I dropped my pants.

"And it's not a good thing to keep a gorgeous lady waiting," I said as I moved over her. "It's pretty amazing what a few scraps of overpriced fabric can do to a man."

"I'd have to agree with you on that point, but I don't hear you complaining,"

I ran my fingers over her belly and upward to her breasts.

"If I ever complain, please beat some sense into me."

"No, that wouldn't be my style," she began as she slid the straps down her arms. "I'd probably tempt you by handcuffing you to the bed and letting you watch me while I rub my clit."

Fuck me…did she just say all of that?

The corners of her mouth turned upward into the sexiest grin…the kind that made me wonder how far she wanted to take this tonight. But if she was serious about the handcuffs, I'd run out to the Charger and grab the spare set in the glove compartment.

What can I say? I like to be prepared at all times.

"Would you mind helping me take this off?" she asked while bringing my hands to the front of her black bra. It was off as soon as it fell from her body. Her chest was slightly heaving as her pink nipples grew harder in front of me. She moved back on the bed and I rubbed both of them as I licked my way down her neck. Her tits were the perfect size for my hands. She let out blue ball inducing moans as I flicked my tongue over her skin.

Her hips were rising to meet mine in a sensual dance. With every brush of them near my cock, it grew harder, but this was not about me. There would be plenty of time for her to become acquainted with it in the future. For now, though, I was more than happy to kiss my way down her belly. Then she said something I was not expecting…again.

"I want you to make me come, Edward…and only you from now on."

I swear my cock just saluted her.

"That would be all my pleasure," I told her as I slid her satin panties down her legs.

She was bare and soaking wet, and I was not about to waste a second of our time. While I let my fingers graze over clit, my mouth moved over hers softly. Our lips barely touched, just enough to increase her ache.

"Please…oh god….please," she moaned.

"Tell me what you want, Angel…how can I make you feel good? Should I press two fingers in your pussy?"

"Yes, Edward…do it now!"

There were no words to describe her sweet tightness, except that I would never have enough of it. Her eyes would open and close slowly, but I never stopped watching them. I began curling my fingers upward, wanting to feel her come apart.

"Mmmmmmm, don't stop…I'm going….to come," she said as her head fell back onto the pillow.

"That's it, my Bella…I know that feels good," I told her as I felt her walls clamp down on my fingers. My cock was leaking, but it would have a chance to come out to play soon. For now, my eyes were drinking in the sight of her soaking in all the pleasure that I, Edward Cullen, gave her. I slipped my fingers out of her and into my mouth to get a taste.

To hell with any liquor from now on…I could get drunk off her in seconds.

She caught me a few seconds later.

"Maybe next time you can have more of that," she said as she leaned up to kiss me. We were all tangled up in each other before either one of us realized how late it was. Just as I had her snuggled on top of me, there was the sound of my phone. I nearly tripped as I ran to get it, but it was only a text message.

_"Bring me the combination or she dies. I will give you more directions in the morning."_

To say the least, I was experiencing a level of pissed off that I'd never known before. No one was going to hurt her, and I'd make damn well sure it never happened. I set the phone aside to go lie back down with her, and, thankfully, she was already asleep.

"I love you, Angel, and I'll do everything within my power to protect you."

With one last kiss, I closed my eyes, and silently prayed for an anvil to drop on the heads of Chelsea and Heidi, so I could whisk Bella away for a long vacation.


	5. Chapter 5 The Pleasure

**Chapter 5 The Pleasure**

**Disclaimer – I do not own Twilight or Moonlighting.**

**I'm tickled pink over the response for this fic, and I'm deeply appreciative of my readers. Y'all are the best! Thank you to The DVS1 and momma2afan for prereading. You two are fabulous, as well as my beta, Kitty Masen. Thank you for always making my fics that much better. Now back to the show.**

**BPOV**

For the life of me, I could not understand why he had been on the phone so frequently this morning. Edward kept shooting me this look that made me wonder what the hell he was up to. He insisted that I stay beside him today, which really was not much to ask.

He loved me, and I loved him.

It was that simple, yet very profound at the same time.

It was only a matter of time before we succumbed to the intense nature of our feelings. There was this constant level of tension, but it had turned over the past few days. Maybe it was always love, but the two of us weren't ready to admit it.

That was until last night.

We were finally able to mix oil and water.

I was lost in thought and lost in the feeling of his hand in mine as he drove over Marcus' penthouse. He said there had to be some evidence in that place waiting for us. He was looking around, almost nervously when we pulled into the parking space.

"What exactly do you have planned, Edward? Its' not like he's going to pop up from the dead and open the door for us, offering drinks. And as for Chelsea, she's probably in Mexico by now."

"Nope, that woman is close by because she wants to get her hands on money. My guess is that she got a call from her partner in crime from the jail house. He asked her to help him, and if she said no, he'd implicate her lily white ass."

"That…that makes a lot of sense. She left as fast as she could without telling anyone because she's scared."

"It's all about flight or fight, and she obviously chose to fly the cuckoo's nest," he said as we walked to the elevator. "This time we could make the most of it. I know it's on your mind."

He pulled me next to his body and claimed my mouth with his own. The feeling of his tongue meeting mine was exhilarating, and I reveled in how he didn't hold back. His hands moved up on my mine then down in slow strokes. Even through the fabric of my dress I could feel the passion in his touch. Why the hell did I even wear panties around this man? They were getting wetter by the moment. The door opened, so we had to break away. But he still kept his arm around my waist.

"Now how are you going to get inside?" I asked him as he pulled out something that looked like a writing pen.

"Watch and see Angel, watch and see."

He twisted the pen, and a sharp needle came out. Then he slid it into the lock of the door knob.

"Picking locks is a long lost art form that so few people can do well anymore. It only takes a little manipulation of a pin that is inside the lock, and…shazam….we are in!"

I was pulled in very quickly, and I let him know that we were very fortunate that no one saw us. He gave me _that_ smile, the one that let me know he knew he was good. If you looked up the definition of fearless in the dictionary, his picture would be right beside that word. It seemed that nothing intimidated him. And it made me love him that much more.

"Now what are we looking for?" I asked as the two of us went through two large rooms.

"Chelsea might know Heidi personally, and she may have written down the code if she had the common sense of a gnat," he said as he pilfered desk drawers.

"Do you really think that a woman would keep anything of importance in her husband's desk?"

"Okay, Sherlock Holmes, where would you stash something valuable that you wanted to keep away from someone?"

"Follow me," I instructed him as he followed me into what I assumed was the bedroom. "A woman likes to have a sense of mystery and romance in her life. They had money, so I'm sure that she had some special place, and I think this might be it."

There was a jewelry armoire next to the bed that was about three feet in height. Carefully, I pulled on the metal handles, and there was a collection of various items inside. Jewelry, small vials of perfume, and an octagon shaped box were inside. I reached in, took out the box, and, once I opened it, a folded piece of paper fell out.

"Edward," I said as I opened it. "Look at this…she had information written down about the business deal between Marcus and Newton."

He took it from my hands to read over it. I watched as his eyes moved over the document. Then a smile broke out over his face.

"You see why we're so fucking good together? And I don't just mean in business."

I lifted my eyebrows at him. "I'd be a raving mad lunatic if I said we weren't."

We got out of there as discreetly as possible, considering that we had illegally entered someone's home. And I'd never been so happy that I chose to wear kiss proof lipstick today. That elevator had not seen that much _intensity_ ever. My panties were so ruined. It was a challenge to stand upright when the doors opened, but that quickly changed. We were face to face with Chelsea Votouri, and from her expression, she was not pleased to see us.

"What the hell are you two doing here?" she asked with her eyes wide open.

"The better question is why did you run after a certain friend of yours called you a few hours ago?"

She clutched her bag to her chest, and looked away from us.

"I…I have no idea what you are talking about," she responded.

"Chelsea, when we visited your mom, she said that you left without so much a polite goodbye," I told her. "How do you explain that?"

"You're fucking lying."

"We know what happened," Edward began. "You and your friend decided it would be…fun to put a gun next to Bella's head and demand the watch. Guess what? He was inept at getting the job done. Completely and utterly inept. And after we detained him for the police, they took him away, but not before we discovered his tattoo."

She tried to walk away, but Edward placed his hand on her shoulder.

"You panicked when he called because he was going to turn you over, too. Nothing like being double crossed, is it?"

In the blink of an eye, she ran from us toward her car. Of course we ran to the Charger and Edward was living up to his "I Drive Like A Cullen" legendary status.

"Where the hell is she going?" I asked as he rounded the corner into the busy street.

"I couldn't tell you, but so long as we don't have to floor it through a mall like the Blues Brothers, we're fine."

I was holding onto the seat and the door handle for dear life as he broke all land speed records, but there was no way we could catch up with her. Then the police started following us of course gaining up while he handled the corners and intersections.

"You're going to lose your license over this. How the hell are we going to explain this one to them?"

"No explanation needed, Bella. She's practically a wanted felon, and I have the distinct feeling she was the one who killed Marcus. We'll get accolades for our valiant work. Women will fall at my feet. Men will want to be me. We'll get a book and a movie deal out of this. Now who do you want to portray you?"

"Oh good grief, Edward! We're in the middle of a car chase…and you are talking about absolute shit?"

"Hey, one of us has got to add a touch of levity to the situation," he said as he jerked the wheel to the left. "And for the record, I'm hoping that British guy that woman love can pull off the part of Edward Cullen."

There was a loud popping sound and I looked out of the window.

"I hope you know there are sparks coming from the rear tire rim."

Seconds later, Chelsea went through an intersection that had a red light, and an oncoming truck hit her at full speed. I had to turn my head as the metal twisted, and thank god our car came to a full stop.

"Is it over yet?" I asked as I peeked through my hands.

"Which part? I can definitely say that Chelsea has left the building, but we have to answer five million questions for LA P.D. now."

-T-

Overwhelmed.

That was the best word to use in this situation.

At some point, the police let us know that Chelsea had indeed killed Marcus. The DNA evidence had come back from a small blood smear that was found on the carpet near his body. Once again, the man I loved I was correct – she was a wanted felon. Her partner in crime, Demetri, had turned her in as part of a plea bargain since she wasn't about to bail his ass out of jail.

And Edward didn't lose his license.

Now I could see across the way into his office from mine. He was pacing, tearing up the carpet as he held the phone near his head. Ever since we arrived back at the agency, he's been more serious, which scared me. I was used to his asinine jokes and lewd comments. But more than that, I wanted him near me, looking at me, caressing me.

_Time to take the bull by the horns, so to speak._

I marched through the main office towards his. Heads turned as I did that, as they always did because everyone knew we were fucking magnets. I ignored the whispers. My mind was on Edward, and, upon entering his office, I slammed the door closed.

"I need to know why you've been in here…pacing and…and pulling your hair out, and why you haven't said one word to me since we got back," I told him as he set the phone down on the desk.

"Bella, It's not that I don't want to talk to you," he began. "Actually, talking is only part of what I want to do with you, but I digress."

He saw that I was not in that kind of mood as I sat down on the desk next to him.

"If you want to know what is really going on, I'll tell you."

"No, I came over her to tell you I'm going to teach poodles how to do the cha cha on their hind legs. Of course I want to know what's going on, Edward. We're partners and we don't keep things from each other…remember?"

He let out a heavy sigh.

"I've gotten some text messages and phone calls that are unsettling. Someone wants the combination or they want you dead."

"Oh my god," I responded and moved off the desk. "Do you have any idea who that person is?"

"That's what I've been working on, Angel. Don't you think I was doing everything under the damn sun to find out who this fucker is?"

He came over to me and lifted my chin to meet his gaze.

"I love you, more than humanly possible, and I'm not about to lose you. These are the eyes I want to wake up to every morning. These are the legs I want around my waist every night," he said as he walked us back to the door. "And this is the mouth I want to kiss every day."

Just like that, his lips were moving next to mine, taking and giving as he pleased. He was not holding back his love or affection. I felt it in every swipe of his tongue that made me weak. It was beyond obvious when he held me next to his body, his erection pushing through the fabric of his pants. He possessed me, owned every inch of my very existence.

"And…I love you, too," I murmured as he moved his hungry mouth to various parts of my neck. When he made contact with _that _place behind my ear, I became unhinged. He had me right where he wanted me.

"You know neither one of us is going to make it much longer."

His mouth moved back to mine to place three soft kisses over it.

"The fire's been lit and it's only a matter of time before I see how intense the blast is," he said with a smirk.

The knock on the door brought us out of our make out session. The receptionist that was sent over by the temp agency cracked the door open to let us know that Mr. Newton was waiting to see us. I asked her to give us a minute.

"We'll need to pick this up after hours," I told him as I tried to regain my professional composure. I'm certain the last thing any of our clients wanted to see was either of us looking like we were seconds away from sex.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Newton," I said as I extended my hand to shake his. "What can we do for you today?"

"I wanted to bring you this address book. After you left the house, I found it, and there is some information inside it that might help you."

He tossed over the petite volume in our direction. Edward opened it and multiple pieces of paper fell out. He and I looked over them for a few minutes.

"Correspondence letters," he said as he looked up at Newton. "Your girl of the week was in contact with Chelsea Voltouri, who was also responsible for the knife in her husband's back."

"What? She would never do that…do you have proof?"

"Only from the mouth of the investigator with infallible DNA evidence," I told him. "Chelsea wanted money and there was a man working with her by the name of Demetri. They knew about the watch and the combination. It appears that Heidi wanted in on the action, too."

"I never knew anything about this until last night," he said as he leaned forward. "Could she have any role in the financial mess the company is in?"

Quickly, I took a side glance at my partner. There had to be blood in his mouth from how hard he was biting his tongue. Newton, for all of his intelligence, was seriously lacking in common sense. The fact that he knew to put one foot in front of the other was nothing short of a miracle.

"There is no doubt in my mind that she played you like a cheap instrument," Edward replied as he began walking around the room. "Let me guess…she hasn't called you or dropped by to see how well you are feeling."

"No, I still haven't seen her in some time."

There was a look on Edward's face that let me know he'd stumbled onto some information. Our eyes met directly from across the room. I loved how his face lit up when he connected all of the pieces…you could almost see the light bulb bursting to life.

"Mr. Newton, it's been a pleasure doing business with you today, but I think we have all the information we need for now," I said as I began to usher him out.

"Are you sure that's all you need?"

I looked back over my shoulder into the office and grinned knowingly at my partner.

"Yes, Mr. Newton, I'm quite certain we have more than what we need right now."

-T-

He told me this was a long shot, but I had faith in the man. I repeated that in my head as I stood outside of the restaurant holding his hand as we went inside to meet Michael. Edward felt that if we met with him privately, then we could get some information out of him. He supposedly knew that Newton and Heidi were involved, so maybe he had more secrets to spill.

"Masen, Marie…so good to see you both. Why is it that I haven't seen either one of you around the office?"

He greeted us with open arms as if we were his long lost friends.

"We've been busy with the press, trying to make the company appear more investment-worthy. But where are the drinks, man? I know that you enjoyed those Martinis the other night," Edward replied as we sat down. His plan was to get this guy a little liquored up.

"Um, yeah, I think I'd like one. It's been a busy day, and I was really surprised when you called to ask if we could have dinner," he began. "You two look really cozy. I'll be those long hours are working some magic."

"Marie here is my little cupcake, aren't you sweetie?" he said sarcastically as he cupped my cheek.

"And Masen is my Papa Bear," I added in a droll voice. Please, god, let this end soon I thought as the waiter brought over drinks. Michael had to be one step away from being an alcoholic the way he was downing them. Edward's plan was working out perfectly because this guy became very chatty very quickly.

"You seemed to know a little bit about Heidi when we talked at the party the other night. When we were in the office earlier, I went to look for her, but no one has seen her in a few days. What's going on?"

"You mean you haven't heard? She was attacked…fucking attacked after the party by some dude. The police were there…yeah she looked bad. No one has seen her, but I know where she is."

I leaned in towards him as Edward kept his arm around me.

"Newton has this place where he keeps his money," he said after setting down a glass. "It's hidden, but I've been told that it's in the basement of his house."

"And let me guess…it's in a safe?" Edward replied.

"Damn you're good," Michael told him after he hiccupped. "I'll bet you anything she's over there now."

"No, I think I'll save my hard earned wages for the dog track," he stated while getting out a few bills to casually toss onto the table. "Dinner's over for us. The kids are at home with the babysitter, so we bid you adieu."

As we walked away, I could feel his arm around me.

"Cupcake? What the hell made you chose that name?"

"For the same reason you chose Papa Bear."

We were inside the car and headed away from the restaurant when he began talking.

"That was a total waste of time. He was about as helpful as an empty helium tank at a carnival."

"I agree with you, but what are we going to do next? There is someone out there that wants the combination, Edward. I really am not looking forward to having bullets in my head."

"Trust me when I say that _will not happen_. I have a plan, and thanks to drunked assed Michael, it might just work."

"Then tell me the details," I said to him as he took my hand in his.

"He said that she might be at Newton's house. If Heidi is that desperate for money, then we can set a trap for her. Newton can call her for us in the morning, and we can wait for her. It's so fucking simple."

"I'm anxious for all of this to be over."

"I know you're more than ready, just like Heidi is ready to get her hand on this combination. She has to think she has leverage, when in reality, it's a mind game or a momentary thrill."

We were quiet until we reached my house.

"I promise, Bella, on all that is normal, that you are safe," he told me when he held the car door open for me. "Do you honestly think that I would risk the life of the woman I love?"

I pulled my wrap over my shoulder as he followed me to the house.

"Just lie with me tonight. Hold me and make me feel loved," I told him. As soon as I had the door closed, he carried me to bed. Clothes were discarded in favor of bare skin. His tongue moved over my mine as we kissed over and over. He eagerly sucked my nipples as if he were a starving man.

"You don't know how much I'm trying to control my absolute desire for you," he murmured as I moved on top of his damn near perfect body.

"It runs both ways," I said as I kissed down his chest and slid my fingers inside the waist of his boxers. "Let me show you how much I need you."

He didn't put up much of a fight as I pulled them down, and I licked my lips as I imagined how good he would taste on my lips in a few seconds. The sound of his moans and grunts filled the room as I dragged my tongue over and under his shaft. I let him see the want I had in my eyes as he watched me. As his cock filled my mouth, he guided my head, gently as I took him in and out.

"If you keep that up…oh god, Bella…yeah, I'm…fuck," he moaned out and then he came in my mouth. The taste of his warm cum was addictive, more than I ever expected. But the next time he was going to have an orgasm, I'd make sure it was when we made love.

I looked up to see that he was sprawled out over my bed, with a very sexy smile on his face.

"Mmmmmm, I take it that you enjoyed that?" I asked as he moved very quickly.

"Angel, it's your turn to come," he replied as he spread my thighs apart and began feasting on my aching pussy. I was writhing in pleasure as he bathed me with his tongue. There wasn't a part of my body that didn't feel the sheer warmth that was coursing through me. I'd look down at him only for a moment, and then my head would meet the pillow. It was too much and not enough at the same time. When his fingers rubbed next to my walls, it was all I could do to breathe. My orgasm tore through my body, leaving me a heaving mess. I could taste myself on his lips as we became lost in a deep kiss.

This and this alone was what I wanted…quite possibly forever.

He drew me into his arms, pulled the covers over us, and looked into my eyes.

"Edward…I love you, and we need to be together…always."

"Always, Angel, and I love you too," he said before kissing my forehead. "But what made you fall for me? Was it the way I sing or my witty sarcasm?" he asked, cocking his eyebrows for effect.

I couldn't help but let out a small giggle.

"There's not enough time for me to tell you all of the reasons. You just need to know that I want to be your girl."

He took my face in his hands.

"You have always been mine. The day you walked into the agency, I said to myself…'Self…that's my future.' It's always been you, even when we we're bickering over something inane."

"We do the bickering well, but there are other things we do even better."

"Mmmm, let's get started on them," he said before capturing my lips in a warm kiss that made my body ache for more. And he gladly gave me all I wanted all night.

**So…..who enjoyed that? Thank you for reading and I love you all! Please leave your thoughts. XXOO**


	6. Chapter 6 The Passion

**Chapter 6- The Passion**

**Disclaimer - I do not own Twilight or Moonlighting**

**Hey y'all! I have to say that I truly love my readers. You all are wonderful and I love to read your comments. Thank you always for prereading momma2afan and TheDVS1. I am in debt to both of you as well as my awesome beta, Kitty Masen. My fics are always better because of you all.**

**EPOV**

The last thing I wanted to do was to get out of her bed this morning. Oh hell, make that our bed. Yes we came that close to giving in, but I wasn't about to push her. I'd waited over six months, so I could handle it.

_Too bad my cock had other ideas._

So I let my mind wander to other inane topics besides Bella for a few minutes. Honestly, we had to get in touch with Newton. As soon as we could get Heidi out of the way, the two of us were taking an overdue vacation. And I already had one quick stop in mind before we left the country. She was dozing lightly while I slipped out of bed and left the room.

"Newton, my man….what's shaking this lovely AM?" I asked the old codger after I found my phone.

_ "Good morning to you as well, Mr. Cullen. You certainly are an unorthodox investigator."_

"Eh, I thrive under chaos, but I deliver results every time. I need to ask a favor of you, Sir."

I heard him cough rather loudly.

_"Alright…what can I do for you that might eventually help me?"_

"We need to catch Heidi very soon, and the bait we want to use is your money."

The line was quiet for a minute.

_"How exactly are you and Ms. Swan going to pull this off? I'm curious to see what you have concocted in your head."_

"All that you need to do is to place one phone call to her. Explain that there is a brief case filled with thousands of dollars waiting in the foyer. You can also tell her that the combination will be given to her once she delivers that to us."

_"But won't she simply run away with it?"_

"Aaahhh, but you have to remember…Satan's handmaiden is a greedy one. She'll think that we'll simply be waiting to hand over the digits. And, of course, that's where we can catch her in the act."

_"How soon do I need to call her?"_

I let out a deep breath.

"Thank you, Newton. I had the feeling that you would be more than willing to help us."

-T-

"Here, please take these back," Bella said as she handed over the binoculars. "I'm tired of waiting on her. How long have we been in your car? A few days maybe?"

I knew she was anxious and as ready for this to be over as I was. She was right about one thing…we had been waiting for over an hour for Heidi to show up. Newton made the call, and we heard her curse filled reply towards all of us. I didn't know that she felt that much anger towards me _and_ my mother.

"Trust me, Angel. She'll be here any time now. The bait has been placed. A mouse can't avoid the cheese for long, even if it suspects a cat nearby."

"But what if she changes her mind?" she said while turning towards me. "This might be the one time when our plan fails. She might be the one nut job that changes her mind and walks away from the trap. We'll still be vulnerable, though, and that is what bothers me the most."

"She will not walk away from this, okay? That bitch wants the combination. No one makes a threat to kill another person simply because it's a specific day of the week. How many times has this played out in books and movies, Bella?"

We looked out of the window when we heard the squeal of tires on asphalt. The bright red Mercedes came over the small hill, but she could not see our car from where I'd parked it. Heidi looked all kinds of disheveled as she ran towards the front door. Seconds later, the two of us got out of the Charger to wait for her to come out. I had my glock ready just in case she was armed.

From the inside of the house, we could hear screams and the sound of gunfire. Bella leaned into me as I tried to shield her from the potential danger we were in the midst of. The door swung open, and there was Heidi, in all of her glory. Blood was splattered over her clothes and face, and the briefcase was firmly clutched in her hand. In the other was a magnum that she had pointed directly at us.

"Come on…give me the fucking combination…I'm very impatient right now," she screamed at us.

I pulled the gun out of the holster, and she was visibly shaking.

"Yeah, I'm sure you want it, but I need you to put down the weapon, Heidi. Drop it at your feet and kick it over to me," I yelled back at her.

She stood frozen, as if she was afraid to make a move. Bella reached into my pocket and pulled out the watch. As she walked from my side towards her, I had to trust that she knew what she was doing.

"The combination is on the inside of the watch Heidi, but I won't give it to you unless you work with me. We have to deal…give us the brief case and you get what you want."

My girl was nothing if not brave in the face of danger.

"Why should I trust either one of you?"

"Because, no matter how much money you are holding in your hand right now, is nowhere near as much as what is the safe," Bella told her as I walked closer. "You know you want more, don't you Heidi? How do you know that Newton actually put money in there?"

I had to give it to Bella. She was good at this, but she learned from the best, that being me. There was a specific look that came over Heidi's face. She was uncertain, and most likely, she thought it might be the truth.

"Think about it…he's nearly bankrupt and all of his _real_ money is where? In the safe that you stole. He would not have anything available to give you."

"Bella's right," I said to her. "You'd be lucky if there was Monopoly money in that brief case right now."

The sound of police cars was distinctly in the distance.

"Give it up, Heidi. You're going to prison soon. I'm sure they will notice that you have Newton's blood all over your clothes," she said.

Apparently, she was not happy about the turn of events, so she threw the case on the ground. She came towards us with the gun pointed.

"Come on and give me the fucking watch then," she said while her hands were shaking. I really wasn't sure if she was going to shoot that thing or not. Multiple police cars pulled in behind us, and of course we could hear the clicking of multiple guns seconds later. The panic in her eyes was evident.

"The game's up now," I told her. "You can either give up or die on the spot."

Heidi started to set the gun down, but I knew that she was only bluffing. I pulled Bella behind me as fast as possible, and, before she could shoot either one of us, I shot at her. Her body collapsed to the ground, but we were not sure if she was dead. The officers rushed over to her while I put away the gun. When I looked over at Bella, she seemed to be alright.

"Please tell me that she is dead and this is finally over," she said.

"Was it really that unpleasant for you?" I asked as I wrapped my arm around her shoulders. "Think about it this way…we faced it together, and we solved yet another mystery."

"Edward, I'm not really sure we did that, but I can say this. If I never see another dead body for the rest of my life it will be too soon."

"Oh come on…it was only four in total this time around," I said as the police began their procedures.

-T-

The safe was eventually opened at police headquarters. There was a quarter of a million dollars inside, which was going to be kept in the possession of the state. It seemed as if we were well known by the members of the Los Angeles P.D. anymore. They were on a first name basis with us. The two of us signed multiple forms, initialed on many dotted lines, and gave many retellings of our story.

Who would have ever thought that a damn watch could cause _this_ much trouble?

And surely, I thought as I held Bella tightly while we walked towards the exit, there will not be any press or journalist waiting outside. I was wrong. It was like Bambi caught in headlights. Normally, I would have loved having my photograph taken with the most gorgeous woman on the planet. But after the one thousandth flash, we were just a little tired of it. The Chief of Police came outside to distract them as we left the scene. Since he was now fielding their questions, no one seemed to be as interested in us. When we got inside the car, she turned towards me after letting out a deep breath of air.

"Edward, I think I'm ready for that overdue vacation now. As a matter of fact, I'm giving everyone in the office the next week off. "

"You know we're taking one together," I told her as I started the car.

"I figured you had that in mind. Where are you taking me?"

"There are two places, but the first one is non-negotiable. We can decide on the second after we arrive at the first location."

I took her hand in mine as I drove onto her home to pack her bags.

-T-

"This has to be the gaudiest, most ridiculous place you could ever bring me to. Please explain why we are in Las Vegas."

"Because, my Angel, there is a method to my madness. I thought you knew that by now. Besides, we're only here for one reason. It's rather obvious if you think about it, and I know you can figure this one out. What is a common reason people come to Vegas?""

She was quiet for a few minutes as we rode down the strip. Or maybe she was drawn to the multiple signs for the adult nighttime shows. I tapped the taxi driver's shoulder when I saw the street we needed to take to get to the location.

"I have one small guess…are we eloping Edward?"

"Now that's my bride to be. Originally, I intended to have an Elvis impersonator perform the ceremony, but it was too last minute. I was able to book the Little Church of the West, though."

She shook her head and let out a small laugh.

"If I was with any other man, this would be totally out of the question. For us, though…this is our brand of normal. There was never anything usual about our relationship. Hell, you haven't even asked me to marry you."

After we were outside of the taxi, I dropped to one knee, opened a small box, and looked up into her mesmerizing brown eyes.

"Everything you just said is so true about us, but it doesn't change the fact that I would move heaven and hell for you. The love I have for you has only grown more with every day. Please let me build my life around you. Will you please be my wife, Bella?"

The smile that came over her face…god, I'd remember that forever.

"Yes…yes I will. We complete each other, more than I ever thought was possible," she told me as I kissed the spot where her ring would sit forever. About one hour later, we were officially Mr. and Mrs. Edward Cullen once we emerged from the chapel. We decided that we wanted to go to the airport, and we decided once we got there that Acapulco sounded good to us. It was a non- stop flight that would take us a little over three hours. And during that time frame, we made out and ignored everyone else in first class.

Once we arrived at our destination, I hailed another taxi, which was amazingly free of half smoked cigarettes. My Spanish was a best half broken, but I managed to direct him to a very nice hotel on the ocean front.

We shared a knowing grin as I told the person at the front desk that we wanted the honeymoon suite. The concierge tool out suitcases up for us on a separate elevator; Bella and I went up to the room.

"So how do you feel about being my husband now?" she asked as we looked into each other's eyes. "Is it any different than say, twenty four hours ago we were not sharing the same name?"

"Hmmm…I could be an obnoxious idiot and say I feel the same way, but you'd see right through my bull shit."

"Yes, it would be so obvious, but I want to know how you feel, Edward?"

The door to the elevator opened, and I scooped her up into my arms.

"I'm fucking overjoyed that you are my wife, Bella Cullen. Seeing my rings on you and hearing my name following yours makes me the happiest man on earth," I told her a she slipped the card into the lock. "But I have one request."

"What is it that you need me to do?"

I set her down on her feet and kissed her forehead.

"As soon as I open this suitcase, I want you to find the most tempting piece of lingerie you packed. The go into the bathroom, change your clothes, and take one good look at yourself. That will be the last time you'll have any piece of fabric on your body for the next week."

The corners of her sweet mouth turned upward, and she did exactly as I asked a few minutes later. While she was in the bathroom, I threw off everything I was wearing, and I took one long look at my silver band.

Forever.

She and I were together. It was meant to be.

Yeah, I had my girl and she had me.

Damn I'm good.

I heard her clearing her throat, and, as soon as I took in the sight of my wife, my jaw hit the floor. A dark purple slip barley covered her ass, and it left me wanting to rip it off her body. She sauntered over to me, with that grin that unhinged many a man.

"If this had to be the last thing I wore, I was going to make it count."

No other words were needed as we kissed deeply. Love was present while she let her hands roam over my body, leaving a trial of heat in her wake. Seconds later, that slip was a distant memory as I had her lying on her back in the oversized bed.

"Hello my little luscious Angel," I said as I laid over her.

"And greeting to you my love. You know you can only keep a girl waiting for so long."

"Huh? Really? I waited months for you to succumb to my charms."

'That's supposed to be my line," she replied as I lowered my mouth to her neck. "But I would wait as long as necessary for you, Edward. I've loved you for so very long. It just took me some time to work up the nerve to tell you."

"It was going to eventually happen," I began as I licked down to her breasts. "Neither one of us could fight it much longer. And yes…I love you so damn much."

She arched her back as I took her nipple into my mouth, sucking and biting over it. Her hands were in my hair and on my back as I moved back and forth, eager to pleasure her to the hilt. The moans that escaped her mouth spurred me on as I kissed down her flat belly and over her hips. Bella liked it when I lazily kissed behind her knees, but she seemed to like it more when I began blowing over her clit. The taste of her pussy was addictive, euphoric. Neither one of us could get enough as greedily ate her. My fingers were only inside for a few heartbeats before I felt her walls fluttering. She came hard on them, her cum drizzling beautifully.

"Mmmmm, are you ready to feel me inside you?" I asked her as I spread her legs apart.

"Please, god, I can't wait another second," she responded and I slid inside her.

The feeling was nothing less than heaven, and I told her that. We moved perfectly together, as I knew we always would. Her body was wrapped around mine completely; neither one of us was able to be close enough to the other. Our eyes met, and I saw love shining back at me.

"Angel, you feel perfect. This is…damn, just perfect," I whispered as she gripped me tighter.

"I want this forever, Edward...please don't stop."

Her pussy pulled me in even further as I felt every sweet twitch around me. I'd be lying if I didn't say it thrilled me to know that I was the only man she'd ever share this with for the rest of her life. The sexy movements of her body were driving me over the edge. After my orgasm began, I closed my eyes, and I swear I saw rainbows and unicorns.

I was in fucking heaven.

She owned me as much as I owned her.

Eventually, we slowed down, and we held each other as we gasped for air.

"Why didn't you tell me I needed an oxygen tank?" she asked after she snuggled beside me.

I let out a chuckle as I thought about her statement, and then I kissed her swollen mouth.

"I'll be sure to invest in one when we get home, but for now, you'll just need to let me take care of you."

It was the beginning of an unconventional, yet love filled life for the both of us.

**Thank you all for staying with me on this journey. As of now, I am not going to continue this fic. I have numerous other stories that will be coming out in the near future. I hope you all enjoyed this. Please leave your thoughts. XXOO**


End file.
